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Advertisements are messages paid for by a business or advertiser and delivered via a mass medium with the attempt to persuade a target audience to like a brand, develop a more favorable attitude or intend to buy. Small businesses often have limited budgets to spend on advertising, but the positive effects are often worth it.

Awareness

Simply reaching out to the market to let them know you exist is a primary initial objective of advertising. No matter how great your product or service, if no one knows you exist, you cannot sell to them. An effective and often repeated advertisement helps your target audience become more familiar with your brand and ideally recall it when a need arises for which your brand intends to meet.

Induce Business

Advertisements are sometimes intended to induce immediate sales and revenue. Presentation of sales promotions through ads are a way to drive business quickly. Television and radio ads can communicate your message. In print advertisements, such as with magazines and newspapers, you can include sales promotion tools, such as a coupon, right in the ad. New businesses often use promotions to build a customer base, but they are also used to sell excess inventory and create cash flow when needed.

Information and Education

In his January 2011 article "Unappreciated Benefits of Advertising and Commercial Speech" for the website The Technology Liberation Front, Adam Thierer points out that advertisements sometimes serve to inform and educate consumers. This is especially true when new brand or products are introduced to the market or when product complexity means more education is required. Understanding the value of an advertiser's brand relative to the needs they have helps consumers make more informed decisions.

Return on Investment

From a financial standpoint, advertisements should generate a return on investment, indicates Dan Keen of Break Studios in his April 2010 article "10 Benefits Of Advertising." Advertisements cost money to develop and place. Companies consider how much return of investment they get in the form of heightened consumer awareness, improved brand sentiment or direct sales. Evaluating results of advertisements is vital for companies to confirm a return on investment and to avoid wasteful messages that do not accomplish the intended results.

About the Author

Neil Kokemuller has been an active business, finance and education writer and content media website developer since 2007. He has been a college marketing professor since 2004. Kokemuller has additional professional experience in marketing, retail and small business. He holds a Master of Business Administration from Iowa State University.